Wednesday Music News

You can follow Father John Misty on his recent tour in the whimsically lovely video for “I’m Writing a Novel”. Despite his rampant cynicism, the video catches him off guard in several moments. Both giving and watching performances aboard the SS Coachella, or perhaps playing dress up with french costumes, or even running on the beach with a single companion, J Tillman has clearly got a good lease on life as Father John Misty. [Pitchfork]

The Mercury Prize, celebrating the single best British album of the year, announced the 2013 shortlist today. Like previous winners Alt-J, PJ Harvey, Arctic Monkeys, and Franz Ferdinand, this year’s winner is basically guaranteed spike in sales as well as notoriety. The 2013 shortlist includes Arctic Monkeys (again), Savages, David Bowie, Disclosure, Laura Marling, Foals and James Blake, among others. Check out the rest at the shortlist.

This morning on BBC 1, Win Butler of Arcade Fire revealed details about Reflektor. Apparently, the James Murphy produced album will sound surprising to most, and includes several tracks over 7 minutes long on both of the albums sides, and each side will be distinct from the other. As for all the hype? Butler sees the building excitement for the album as akin to the build up a good party would generate as well. [Pitchfork]

Former Beach Fossils member John Pena’s Captured Tracks side project Heavenly Beat has a new album coming out. Prominence was apparently recorded in the same apartment that the last album was, after attempting to record in a studio. Released today, “Honest” feels like a pop-music whisper, honest and quiet while still catchy and gleaming at the same time. [Stereogum]

Deer Tick has given us another cut from their upcoming record. “Just Friends” is a lonely ballad about running into an ex-fiance out of the blue. “I’m probably wrong about this, it felt like she was staring straight through me the whole night. I hadn’t seen her much since we split up. I felt weird interacting as friends since we had never really done that much,” John McCauley said. Listen over at Stereogum.